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Sudan: UN says 89 killed in El Fasher

Displaced people who fled the Zamzam camp, gather near the town of Tawila in North Darfur, Sudan, February 14, 2025. © 2025 AFP via Getty Images

The United Nations said Friday that at least 89 people were killed in 10 days of attacks on the besieged Sudanese city of El Fasher and an adjoining camp for displaced people.

The U.N. human rights office said the attacks by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces occurred through Aug. 20. Spokesman Jeremy Laurence said the actual number is likely higher.

“We are particularly horrified that among the most recent spate of civilian killings, 16 appear to have been cases of summary executions,” Laurence told a press briefing in Geneva. He said such attacks were unacceptable and must cease immediately.

Sudan has been torn apart since April 2023 by a power struggle between army chief Gen. Abdel Fattah Burhan and Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, commander of the rival Rapid Support Forces. The fighting has killed tens of thousands.

El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur state, has been under siege by the RSF since last May.

“This pattern of attacks on civilians and wilful killings, which are serious violations of international humanitarian law, deepens our concerns about ethnically-motivated violence,” Laurence said.

Meanwhile, the World Health Organization said El Fasher was suffering “a severe humanitarian and public health crisis” driven by active conflict, blockade and mass displacement.

WHO spokesman Christian Lindmeier said civilians face severe food shortages, rising malnutrition deaths and severely limited access to health care.

“A large cholera outbreak is ongoing across Darfur state and has hit communities and displacement sites, adding pressure to already fragile services,” he added.

He said all 18 states in Sudan are reporting cholera, with 48,768 cases and 1,094 deaths reported this year through Aug. 11.

Cholera is an acute intestinal infection that spreads through food and water contaminated with bacteria, often from feces. It can kill within hours but is treatable with oral rehydration and antibiotics.